


I'll Hold Your Hand At Midnight

by mikoiifish



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Drabble, F/F, Light Angst, Post-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Set during their spirit world trip, Spirit World Vacation, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-31
Updated: 2020-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:15:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24474871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mikoiifish/pseuds/mikoiifish
Summary: Korra and Asami talk during a late night.Set Post-Canon.
Relationships: Korra/Asami Sato
Comments: 3
Kudos: 109





	I'll Hold Your Hand At Midnight

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!! I'm finally writing after a great many months of zero inspiration. I've just finished watching Atla and Lok and both of them have deeply touched my heart. Hopefully we'll see more of my work concerning these fandoms but, for now, I offer you this.

“Korra?”

Korra rolls over, blinking slowly in the darkness. Sleep clings to her eyes like a lover’s embrace, sticky molasses threatening to drag her back down into the depths of unconsciousness.

“What’s wrong?” she mumbles. Asami stirs next to her, propping herself up onto her elbow. The sleeping bag rustles in the quiet of the spirit world. Every breath hangs in balance like a delicate leaf on water.

She and Asami have been in the spirit world for a few days now, wandering the lush plains and discovering new secrets beneath each stone. They lay now, in the grass, under a faux night sky to rest.

“Nothing,” Asami starts, before sucking in a short breath. “You were just talking in your sleep.”

Korra’s silent for a few moments. She watches stray spirits fly above their heads, lazily doing circles against the dark sky.

“What was I talking about?” she asks quietly. She already knows.

Her ears still ring from the spirit-vine weapon’s blast. Every time she closes her eyes, her enemies' faces are there. She relives each battle most nights.

Sometimes it’s Kuvira, sometimes it’s Amon. Sometimes it’s still Zaheer and she’s back on that stupid rock, metallic poison eating away at her blood, her breath being ripped from her lungs-

“Korra.”

“Sorry,” Korra forces out. “I’m alright. I just- I haven’t been sleeping well, is all.”

Asami’s face is shadowed by the giant mushroom over their heads so Korra can’t see her face, but she can imagine the look of pity on it right now.

“Don’t-” Korra starts, gritting her teeth with frustration. “It’s nothing, okay? I can handle it. Let’s just enjoy our vacation.”

Asami sighs quietly, a resigned sound.

“I wish you could tell me what’s going on in your mind,” she says. “I may not understand, but I can at least listen.”

Korra traces the shape of Asami’s body in the dark with her eyes, watching her ribs rise and fall as she breathes. There is reassurance in her deep, easy breathing, peace in the drapes of cloth over her waist.

They are alive and safe. They are here.

“When… when I close my eyes, all I can see is the blast from Kuvira’s death machine coming at me,” Korra finally whispers. “But in my dreams, it hits me. It hits me while I’m in the Avatar state and that’s it- the cycle is over. I fail.”

In the dark, Asami’s hand meets hers. Their pinkies touch briefly, before linking together. It grounds Korra immediately, Asami’s presence a steady rock next to her.

“But that didn’t happen.” Asami says. “You’re here now. With me. Kuvira _lost_ and she’s going to _rot_ in prison now.”

Korra thinks about Kuvira’s face when they’d ended up in the spirit world - the desperate way she’d asked if they were dead. She thinks about how Asami had cried for hours after the fight for her father.

“I feel like a failure,” she finally confesses. “Did you see Mako’s arm after the fight? I couldn’t even protect my friends.”

“That wasn’t your fault in any way!” Asami sits up in her agitation, wrenching apart their hands. Korra follows her, bewildered by the sudden tension.

“Korra, listen to me.” Asami raises her hands and cups Korra’s face. “You have to know I’m proud of you. We all are. You are the best Avatar I have _ever known-_ ”

“I’m the only Avatar you know.”

“-and, and you have done _everything you can_.”

Korra reaches out and pulls Asami into her arms. They sit, wrapped in each other’s arms as the spirits swoop around their heads. Korra closes her eyes and, for once, lets herself soak it in. Asami smells like fresh leather and jasmine flowers.

She feels like home.

“Well,” Asami sniffles when they draw apart. “You’re the best Avatar other than Kyoshi.”

Korra laughs, shoving her away gently. “You’re a traitor.”

Asami chuckles, leaning forwards to rest her head on Korra’s shoulder.

“Really, though,” the taller girl murmurs. “I promise you- you’re a great Avatar. _And_ an amazing friend.”

Korra gazes down at her. Asami’s eyes are closed; she lays peacefully against Korra’s chest, so close to her heart that its wild beating is probably obvious. The wind blows through her hair gently, rustling the leaves and grass that stretches on for ages.

“Do you think Opal and Bolin are going to be okay?” Korra asks.

“They’ll both be fine,” Asami chuckles. “For all we know, they’re gonna be getting married in a year or two.”

“Right,” Korra laughs weakly. “Marriage.”

She glances again at Asami’s serene expression and thinks that maybe the other girl already knows how she’s feeling. They haven’t said anything to each other about it yet but, well, maybe someday. The spirits are already rooting for them anyway.

They sit in silence, Korra watching two rat spirits dance on top of a giant mushroom and Asami drifting off against her shoulder.

“We should go back to sleep,” Asami says finally. Her voice is laden with exhaustion and Korra suddenly feels terrible for keeping her up so long.

“Yeah,” she agrees. “Come on, get back in your sleeping bag.”

It takes a little maneuvering to get Asami back to her bed, seeing as how she’s almost asleep but, once she’s settled in, Korra leans back on her hands and turns her face up to the sky. It remains dark - night and day don’t exist in the spirit world, after all - but star-like spirits twinkle high above her head to light up the path.

This time, when Korra closes her eyes, no dreams haunt her.


End file.
